This is the fifth in a series on Bourbon by Zach Pearson. Read them all: Bourbon, Bourbon After the Act, Bourbon: What it is ... and isn't, Making Bourbon, Who Makes My Bourbon, Producer Capsules., Finding the Good Stuff, Tasting the Good Stuff, Neat, Mashbills, Geeky Information and Resources.
About a year ago, GQ exerpted this great picture from David Haskell's The Kings County Distiller Guide to Urban Moonshining. Click the image on the left to see the detail. It’s pretty easy to see from this that there are really only thirteen major Bourbon producers in the United States. These 13 distilleries are owned by only nine companies.
Now, I know what you’re thinking. You can’t walk into a liquor store and not see an entire 50 foot shelf of Bourbons with names you’ve never heard of. Some of them are even local. All of them have great stories on the back about how this particular Bourbon was the favorite of Ulysses S. Grant or Al Capone or was made by some hill-William from a secret family recipe only recently rediscovered inside a hollow log in Possum Lick, Kentucky. Like the Templeton Rye label to the left. Click it to expand and read it.
Best Nixta cocktail I've had so far, even though I subbed Mezcal for Raicilla and had to leave out the cilantro because I didn't have any. Looking forward to trying it again when I get some!
Solid 4+. BroVo Amaro #14 is a good sipper on its own, but I find it somewhat challenging to employ effectively in cocktails. In this drink the BroVo is center stage, but with a well-composed supporting cast. The drier hogo of the El Dorado 3 yr I used blended well with Jameson and the woody/nutty oloroso sherry; forming a chorus with the chocolate herbal of the amaro, linked by the subtle Banane du Bresil I chose. The chocolate bitters provide just the right amount of boost to BroVo's inherent chocolate vibe.
Didn't have Coconut Rum, so blended Clement Mahina Coco liquor 50/50 with an aged rum, turned out quite nice. It's a good blend of sweet and bitter, and always novel to have a nearly black cocktail as a look.
Hovers right on the edge of too much astringency.
Pusser's version: 4 oz pineapple juice, 2 oz Pusser’s rum, 1 oz orange juice, 1 oz cream of coconut